Sales Cycle Management is more than just a fancy name for a salesperson’s job description. It’s a roadmap to success for any salesperson and an essential tool for any manager who seeks to increase their sales team’s productivity and reduce their costs. This comprehensive resource is an in-depth review of the sales cycle from the point of first contact all the way to closeout. It includes a description of each step and the critical information needed to manage each one, so that sales can be maximized throughout the process.
As more and more companies find themselves buying over the old-fashioned way—i.e., by contract—it’s critical to know how to manage the sales cycle, especially when it comes to closing deals.
Sales cycle management involves the planning, execution, and analysis of the sales process to ensure that product and service are effectively sold. This process is crucial to the success of the sales team and the organization, as it must be continually refined to ensure that the sales process is always optimized to channel the highest possible sales.. Read more about sales stages best practices and let us know what you think.
Let’s take a look at what a sales cycle is and the stages that make up a sales cycle before we get into sales cycle management.
What Is a Sales Cycle and How Does It Work?
A sales cycle is a phrase used to describe the stages in the sales process that begin when a sales representative finds a prospective client and ends when the transaction is closed. Simply stated, a sales cycle is the trip that a prospective customer takes from the time they express interest in a product until the time they complete a purchase.
What’s more, why is it significant?
Understanding your sales cycle is crucial to your performance for the following reasons:
- It assists you in keeping track of all sales, including the number of steps each sales person took.
- It enables you to get insight into your sales operations and assess their performance.
- You may modify and enhance their sales procedure if required.
What Are the Sales Process’s Seven Steps?
The phases of the sales process are summarized here. Make sure you’re aware of the context in which you’ll be using them in your entire sales cycle.
Prospecting is step one.
This step entails locating prospective customers who are interested in your product or service. Every sales process is built on this basis. Sales prospecting is the process of identifying qualified prospects who are on the verge of purchasing the advertised product or service.
Prospecting begins with the creation of an Ideal Customer Profile. An ICP is a description of the ideal customer for a company’s product or service. It focuses on sales and marketing teams, and it aids in the gathering of critical information such as client requirements.
Sales representatives not only prospect for new clients, but also qualify them. Prospecting often entails raising awareness among prospective consumers. Salespeople may do this by promoting their product or service on social media platforms like Facebook and Instagram, blogs, and even podcasts.
2. Get ready
Preparation is the second stage of the sales cycle. It involves doing research and collecting essential information about your client in order to craft an effective pitch that will seal the sale.
It’s critical that salespeople get to know their prospects’ requirements, desires, and expectations, as well as essential background information like their profession and schooling.
This knowledge can aid you in crafting the ideal sales presentation that will entice your prospect and convince them of the worth of any product or service you have to offer.
3. Take a strategy
This is the point at which your initial impression will be made or broken. Sales staff meet with clients during this step of the sales cycle, either in person, through video conferencing applications, or by email. Here, sales representatives introduce themselves and begin building a relationship with the prospect by engaging in small chat, asking questions, and other conversational techniques.
4. Make a presentation
Sales teams show how their product or service directly fits the prospect’s requirements during the presentation stage. The presentation should be customized to identify and address the prospect’s pain areas while also providing a solution.
To make their arguments more apparent, sales teams may utilize PowerPoint or Keynote presentations, as well as interactive sessions in which the prospect may try the product. During this stage, cross-selling and up-selling are often utilized.
5. Dealing with objections
Customers may have reservations or pause before purchasing your goods. Before making a choice, it’s normal to want additional information. Good salespeople should use these concerns as an opportunity to learn more about the prospect’s requirements and modify their pitch accordingly.
Here are a few pointers to consider while dealing with objections throughout the sales cycle:
- Recognize the prospect’s viewpoints and provide suitable solutions. Take the time to listen and figure out what’s causing them skepticism.
- Pose inquiries. It will help you get a better understanding of the situation and discover a solution more quickly.
- Be prepared to respond to any concerns raised by your prospect. Even so, make sure your responses are respectful and kind.
RELATED: Check out our advice on dealing with objections.
6. Bringing the transaction to a close
This step of the sales cycle may be difficult at times, but it is not impossible. In this scenario, sales representatives clinch the transaction by asking compelling questions that bring the prospect closer to a decision. The conditions and finalization of the transaction become an afterthought if you play your cards correctly.
7. Keep in touch
The process of closing a transaction does not stop there. Even after the transaction is completed, sales representatives should follow up with their prospects and clients. The aim is to turn a one-time consumer into a devoted follower of your product or brand.
Sending a thank you letter or email, as well as checking in with the customer to see how they’re doing and whether the product fulfilled their expectations, are all part of the process.
RELATED: Don’t miss out on our effective sales follow-up emails!
What is Sales Cycle Management, and how does it work?
Sales cycle management is keeping track of what occurs at each step of the sales life cycle and adapting to the buyer’s behavior throughout those critical periods.
The phases of the sales cycle differ depending on whether you’re selling to the midmarket or the enterprise, but they all originate from the same process:
- RDD (Research-Discovery-Demo): A high-level demonstration accompanied by a discussion of the prospect’s job, company, and major objectives.
- Custom Demo or POV: A deeper dig and working session with various stakeholders that develops use cases and overall business effect from the viewpoint of a practitioner and a business leader.
- We’ve created a technological fit inside their marketing and sales environment, and we’ve won the technical win. The company understands where we fit in and how we set ourselves apart.
- Organizational Buy-In: Key stakeholders are aware of the implications for their company, and the decision-making process, economic buyer, and advocate are all on the same page about how our solution will benefit their organization.
- Contract Negotiation: Once all stakeholders are aware of the value and have an order form in hand, payment conditions and price are discussed if required.
MEDDIC has historically been used to qualify complicated B2B sales prospects in Enterprise selling processes. You may use MEDDIC and Challenger Sales Methodology in your sales cycle management to proactively identify risk, provide your audience with actionable takeaways, and maintain desired sales cycle duration, whether you’re selling high-volume/low ACV transactions or whale-sized enterprise prospects.
Daniel Nilsson is the author of this image.
What Do Sales Management Elements Entail?
In sales management, there are three critical elements:
- Operation of Sales
- Strategy for Selling
- Analysis of Sales
Team Building and Sales Operations
This aspect of sales management is finding and assembling effective salespeople from different departments into a sales team. It is the sales manager’s responsibility to guarantee that tasks are delegated to the appropriate individuals and that they are completed.
A sales manager should collect as much information as possible about prospective sales team members so that each one is assigned to the position that is most suited to them. Following the assignment of responsibilities, sales managers set objectives and goals for each team member and ensure that they are met.
Aside from forming a sales team and assigning responsibilities, sales managers are also responsible for keeping their team engaged and evaluating them on a regular basis, providing feedback.
Sales Process and Strategy
One of the most essential responsibilities of a sales manager in a company environment is to prepare a sales pipeline. A sales pipeline is a diagram that depicts a company’s sales process. It serves as a guide for sales teams and aids in the monitoring and evaluation of sales processes.
A sales pipeline also keeps salespeople organized and focused on their goals and objectives.
Reporting and Analysis of Sales
Sales analysis keeps sales teams on their toes by revealing areas in which they may improve and how to optimize particular tactics for even better results.
When it comes to sales reporting, sales metrics are used to provide additional information on every element of your sales cycle as you track success. These are some of the metrics:
- Deal size is average.
- Your sales pipeline’s total amount of transactions.
- Velocity of sales.
CRM solutions are particularly helpful at this part of the sales cycle. They simplify sales processes and make management easier.
What exactly is MEDDIC?
- Metrics: How are your prospects assessed…and what is the financial effect of your solution when compared to their criteria?
- Who has the power to sign off on a purchase? Economic Buyer(s): Who has the authority to sign off on a purchase?
- Decision Criteria: What characteristics (and what value) does your solution (or a comparable product) need to have in order to influence a buying decision?
- Decision-Making Process: Who and how does a purchase happen at your prospect’s company?
- Identification of Pain(s): Where does it hurt (emotionally, rationally, and financially), and is it connected to significant events?
- Champion(s): Have you developed an internal furious fan who can assist influence and drive a victory for both companies?
If you can identify MEDDIC during your first discovery discussion and grasp your buyer’s specific circumstance, your chances of a streamlined sales opportunity increase significantly.
Please avoid from “selling” your solution before fully knowing how you and your solution assist your customer, as Jacco vanderKooij points out:
“It is malpractice to prescribe before a diagnosis has been made.”
Your prospect’s discovery calls should be used as active learning sessions. With a joint upfront contract, you and your buyer may both agree that the discussion will be mutually beneficial, ensuring that your dialogue is relevant, customized, and moves forward if both sides believe there is a match.
The Challenger Approach
You may use the basic lessons from CEB’s Challenger approach even if the program isn’t fully implemented. When you combine MEDDIC with Challenger, you have a really strong procedure.
- Teach your customers something new and useful – Allow them to leave with more than just a knowledge of your goods. They should be able to see how you set yourself out from the competitors. Demonstrate how your idea will enhance their “future world.” Make champions out of them!
- Customize your discussions and demonstrations to be more relevant — I guarantee that your pre-call research will help you have more productive sales interactions. Do you recall the metrics you learned? This is an excellent opportunity to explain how your solution may help to positively influence those precise KPIs. Many personalities in the same company are affected by important business indicators. Maintaining relevance throughout your sales cycle management ensures that everyone is on the same page.
- Take command of the discussion – especially if it deviates from the original topic. It’s your duty to convey intelligible information without coming off as pushy or off-putting. Remind your customer of their selection criteria and what they said during your last discussion.
Principles of Sales Cycle Management in Practice
Inquire about their function… It’s OK to make precise assumptions at this stage since it enables you to inquire about their sales data.
Here are a few examples of metrics: As VP of Sales, I realize that hitting and exceeding quota is a key priority for you and your representatives. What are some of the major efforts you have in mind to help your new employees achieve greater levels of success?
Is it possible to sell to an SDR leader? The following measures are often used to assess them:
- Opportunities that are Sales Qualified
- Meetings Scheduled/Have Taken Place
- Closed-Won Opportunities as a Percentage
Most of the time, it’s a combination of all of the above. You may learn about their conversion rates and specific data, as well as how your solution can help them achieve their goals.
Economic Buyers & Your Champion: Identify who you are speaking with and what you need to do to gain ground with an Economic Buyer. Most decisions in today’s selling world require agreement from multiple stakeholders, even in the smallest of organizations.
It’s critical to choose an internal advocate who can help build momentum among decision-makers. When it comes to sales cycle management, a champion may be just as useful as a team member. Your Champion may also be your Economic Buyer if you’re fortunate!
Decision Criteria: This is the most mysterious and hardest to extrapolate of all the criteria. To separate the must-haves from the nice-to-haves, you’ll need to ask excellent questions. Understanding the “Why” behind some of their responses is critical, as it clarifies for both sides what is a deal-breaker and what may be offered as a compromise.
Decision Process & Identification of Pain: Every sales org. should take enablement and coaching seriously—one of the first steps is to identify what questions to ask without it becoming an interrogation. Don’t forget, there are no excuses for a rep who doesn’t self-enable.
- Who else need a visual representation of the answer in order to make an educated decision?
- How have you previously bought a comparable tool/solution/platform?
- What does your current process look like, and what kind of feedback has your team given you?
- What are you doing now to make things better?
The Challenger Approach
You may use the basic lessons from CEB’s Challenger approach even if the program isn’t fully implemented. When you combine MEDDIC with Challenger, you have a really strong procedure.
- Allow your customers to go away with more than a basic knowledge of your product by teaching them something fresh and actionable. They should be able to see how you set yourself out from the competitors. Demonstrate how your idea will enhance their “future world.” Make champions out of them!
- Customize your discussions and demonstrations to be more relevant—I guarantee that your pre-call research will help you have more productive sales interactions. Do you recall the metrics you learned? This is an excellent opportunity to explain how your solution may help to positively influence those precise KPIs. Many personalities in the same company are affected by important business indicators. Maintaining relevance throughout your sales cycle management ensures that everyone is on the same page.
- Take command of the discussion – especially if it deviates from the original topic. It is your responsibility to convey smart information straight without coming off as pushy or off-putting. Remind your customer of their selection criteria and what they said during your last discussion.
Important Points to Remember
The process of creating and establishing a sales team charged with coordinating sales activities in order for companies to achieve their goals is known as sales cycle management. It is made up of three parts:
- Sales Operations: This is where the sales manager finds qualified individuals and brings them together to form a single sales team. It is critical for sales managers to keep their employees engaged and to ensure that each team member is assigned to a position that is a good fit for them.
- Sales strategy is creating a sales pipeline in which sales representatives use the best sales methods to get the best results.
- The use of metrics to monitor business performance and find opportunities for improvement is known as sales analysis.
Companies may also use sales cycle management concepts in three different ways, including:
1. Rather of selling, educate prospects on the value of your product/service. By doing so, you distinguish yourself from rivals by demonstrating the effect your solution will have.
2. Identify a Champion on your team who will assist sales management and help market your product to prospects.
3. Incorporate your metrics results into your demos and presentations to make them more relevant and compelling to prospective customers.
Marketing and Sales Management have two very distinct but closely related jobs. Marketing is the process of identifying, engaging, and fostering customers, while Sales Management is the process of generating and managing customer demand. Both of these jobs deal with generating new customers and converting those new customers into profit. However, the actual jobs are different. Marketing is about identifying customers that are worth marketing to, while Sales Management is about identifying customers that are worth selling to.. Read more about sales cycle stages salesforce and let us know what you think.
{“@context”:”https://schema.org”,”@type”:”FAQPage”,”mainEntity”:[{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”What are the stages of the sales cycle?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
The stages of the sales cycle are as follows:
1. Prospecting
2. Lead generation
3. Qualification
4. Sales”}},{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”What is sales management cycle?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
Sales management cycle is the process of planning, organizing, and controlling the sales activities of a company.”}},{“@type”:”Question”,”name”:”What is the sales cycle definition?”,”acceptedAnswer”:{“@type”:”Answer”,”text”:”
The sales cycle is the time between when a product is introduced to the market and when it is removed from the market.”}}]}
Frequently Asked Questions
What are the stages of the sales cycle?
The stages of the sales cycle are as follows: 1. Prospecting 2. Lead generation 3. Qualification 4. Sales
What is sales management cycle?
Sales management cycle is the process of planning, organizing, and controlling the sales activities of a company.
What is the sales cycle definition?
The sales cycle is the time between when a product is introduced to the market and when it is removed from the market.
Related Tags
This article broadly covered the following related topics:
- sales cycle stages
- sales process flowchart
- sales process example
- sales cycle diagram
- sales cycle documents